Morris tribune., 1887-12-21
,unlNE INTERVIEW.
Full Text of His Views on the
Message.
WILL MAKE SQUARE ISSUE
BE Would Repeal the Tax on To-
baoco Immediately.

The Tax on Whisky Should TO to Fort
ify Our Coasts-"Protectiop to Amer
lean Industries Should he Maintained"
''NothinS SO Mischievous to Business as
| Uncertainty, Nothing SO Paralyzlns rs
Doubt" .
PARIS, Dec After reading an abstract
of the presidents message laid before all
Europe this morning, saw Mr.. Blaine and
asked him if he would be willing to give his
views upon tho Recommendation Of tho
presidentin the form of a letter or interview.
He preferred the interview, if would agree
to send him an intelligent shorthand re-
porter, with such questions as should give
free scope for an expression of his views.
The following lucid and powerful statement
is the result. Mr.. Blaine began by saying to
the reporter:
Il have been reading an abstract of the
presidents message and have been especially
interested in the comments of the London
papers. Those papers all assume to declare
the message is n free trade manifesto and
evidently are anticipating an enlarged market
for English fabrics III the United States as n
consequence of the presidents recommended
tions Perhaps that fact stamped the char
acter OF the message more clearly than any
words of mine can"
''You don't mean actual free trade without
dutyf' queried the reporter.
No "replied Mr.. Blaine. = Nor do the
London papers mean that. They simply
mean that the president has recommended
what in the United States is known as
revenue tariff, rejecting the protective fea-
ture as an object and rot even permitting
protection to result freely as an incident to
revenue duties"
Il don't know that l quite comprehend
that last point" said the reporter.
Il mean" said Mr.. Blaine, that for the
first time IN the history of the United States
the preSi,icne recommends retaining the in
ternal tax IN order that the tariff may be
forced down even below the fair revenue
standard. He recommends that the tx on
tobacco lie retained. and thus that many mil
lions annually shall be levied on a domestic
product which would far better come from a
tariff on foreign fabrics
THE TOBACCO TAX SHOULD BE REPEALED
AT ONCE.
''Then do you mean to imply that you
would favor the repeal of the tobacco tax"
Certainly: [ mean just that" said Mr..
Blaine. Il should urge that it be done at
once. even before the Christmas holidays. 1t
would in the first place bring great relief to
growers of tobacco all over the country, and
would, moreover, materially lessen the price
of the article to consumers. Tobacco to mil
lions of men is a necessity. The president
calls it Il luxury, but it is a luxury in no
other sense than tea and coffee are luxu-
ries. 1t is we'll to remember that the lux
81
day Watch, if you please, the number of
men at work on the farm, in the coal mine,
along the railroad. in the iron foundry or
in any calling. and you will find ninety
five in 100 chewing while they
work. After each meal the same pro-
portion seek the solace of a pipe or
cigar These men not only pay the
millions of the tobacco tax, but pay on every
plug and every cigar an enhanced price
which the tax enables the manufacturer and
retailer to impose. The only excuse for such
tax is the actual necessity under which the
government found itself during the war, and
the years Immediately following. To retain
the tax now in order to destroy the protec
ton which would incidentally flow from rails
ing the same amount Of money on foreign
imDoI-s is certainly a most extraordinary
policy for III goYr~onent."
THE WHISKY Ia .HoULD BE RETAINED.
''Well, then, Mr.. 3 line, would you advise
= the repeal of the whisky tax also."
mo. would not. Other considerations
than those of financial administration are to
be taken into account with regard to whisky.
There is q moral side to it.. To cheaper
the price of whisky is to increase its CON
sumption enormously There would
be no sense in urging the reform
wrought by high license in many states
If the national government neutralizes the
good effect by making whisky within reach
of every one at twenty cents a gallon.
Whisky would be everywhere distilled if the
surveillance OF the government We're with
drawn by the remission of the tax, and Illicit
sales could not then be prevented even by q
policy as rigorous and searching as that with
which Russia pursues the NihilistS. It would
destroy high license at once in all the states.
WHISKY SHOULD PAY FOR COAST DE-
FENsEs.
''Whisky has done vast deal of harm in
the United States. would try to make it
do some good. would use the tax to fortify
our cities on the seaboard In view Of the
powerful letter addressed to the Democratic
party on the subject of Notifications by the
late Mr.. Samuel J. Tilden, in 1885, I am
amazed that TO attention has been paid to
the subject by the Democratic administra-
ton. Never before in the history of the
world has any government allowed great
cities Oh the seaboard, like New York, Phila-
delphia, Boston, Baltimore, New Orleans and
San Francisco to remain absolutely defense
less"
IN TINE OF PEACE PREPARE FOR WAR
But" said the reporter, ''you don't think
we are to have war in any direction"
''Certainly not" said Mr.. Blaine. Neither,
presume, did Mr.. Tilden when he wrote his
remarkable letter. But we should change q
remote chance into an absolute impossibility
If our weak and exposed points were strongly
fortified. If today we had by any chance
even such war as we had with Mexico our
enemy could procure ironclads in Europe that
would menace our great cities with destruc-
ton or lay them under contribution"
'sBut would not our fortifying now posi-
bly, look as if we expected warp
ssWhy should it any more than the fortii-
cations made seventy or eighty years ago by
our grandfathers when they guarded them
selves against successful attack from the arm
aments of that day? We don't necessarily
expect burglar because we lock our doors
at night, but if by any possibility burglar
comes it contributes vastly to our peace OF
mind and our sound sleep to feel that he can't
get in" sa....
HOUSES AND FARMS PAY TOO MUCH TAX.
ssBut after the Notifications should be con-
structed would you still maintain the tax on
whisky
EYES," said Mr.. Blaine, $50 long as there is
whisky to tax would tax it, and when the
national government should have no use for
the money l would divide the tax among the
members of the Federal Union with the
specific object of tightening the tax on real
estate. The houses and farms of the whole
country pay too large a proportion
of the total taxes. If ultimately re-
lief could be given in that direc-
ton it would, in my Judgment, be
wise and benefcent policy. Some honest
but misguided friends of temperance have
urged that the government should not use
the money derived from the tax ON whisky.
My reply is that the tax on whisky by the
Federal government, with its suppression OF
oil lioi@